A new product launches. You need a one-pager, pitch deck, battle card, demo script, and sales training. Each one built from scratch, taking 2-3 hours per deliverable.
Three months later, another launch. Same process. Same 10-12 hours creating the same types of materials with slightly different content.
Over a year, your team recreates the same formats 20+ times. That's 200+ hours spent on formatting instead of substance.
The alternative is building templates once and using them forever. Great templates make teams 3x faster while maintaining consistent quality and brand.
Here's how to build templates for common PMM deliverables.
Why Templates Matter
Without templates:
- 2-3 hours per deliverable formatting
- Inconsistent quality across team
- Every PMM has their own style
- New PMMs reinvent the wheel
- Stakeholders get confused by different formats
With templates:
- 20-30 minutes to populate with content
- Consistent quality and brand
- Unified team approach
- New PMMs productive immediately
- Stakeholders know what to expect
Templates aren't about being lazy. They're about focusing energy on strategy and content, not layout.
The 10 Essential PMM Templates
1. Battle Card Template
Core Sections:
- One-sentence competitive positioning
- When we win / When they win
- Trap questions to ask prospects
- Response scripts for common objections
- Proof points (customer examples)
- Pricing comparison
Format: 2-page PDF, branded, print-friendly
Time saved: 2 hours → 30 minutes
2. Product One-Pager Template
Core Sections:
- Headline value prop
- Problem/solution
- Key benefits (3-5 bullets)
- Feature highlights
- Customer logo grid
- CTA (demo, trial, contact)
Format: Single page PDF, visual, sales-friendly
Time saved: 3 hours → 45 minutes
3. Pitch Deck Template
Core Slides:
- Problem
- Our Solution
- How It Works
- Key Benefits
- Differentiation
- Customer Proof
- Pricing/Next Steps
Format: 7-12 slides, modular for different audiences
Time saved: 4 hours → 1 hour
4. Launch Brief Template
Core Sections:
- Product/feature overview
- Target audience
- Launch tier (1/2/3)
- Positioning and messaging
- Success metrics
- Timeline and owners
- Resources needed
Format: 1-2 page doc
Time saved: 1.5 hours → 20 minutes
5. Positioning Document Template
Core Sections:
- Target audience
- Problem statement
- How we solve it uniquely
- Value propositions by persona
- Key differentiators
- Messaging hierarchy
- Proof points
Format: 2-3 page doc with clear sections
Time saved: 3 hours → 1 hour
6. Demo Script Template
Core Sections:
- Discovery questions to ask
- Demo narrative arc
- Feature callouts and benefits
- Objection handling
- Competitive positioning
- Next steps/CTA
Format: Structured doc with timings
Time saved: 2 hours → 45 minutes
7. Case Study Template
Core Sections:
- Customer overview
- Challenge/problem
- Solution implemented
- Results (quantified)
- Customer quote
- Additional resources
Format: 2-page PDF or web format
Time saved: 4 hours → 1.5 hours
8. Sales Training Deck Template
Core Slides:
- What we're launching and why
- Target audience and use cases
- Key messaging and positioning
- Demo walkthrough
- Competitive positioning
- Objection handling
- Available resources
- Q&A
Format: 15-20 slides with presenter notes
Time saved: 3 hours → 1 hour
9. Buyer Persona Template
Core Sections:
- Role and responsibilities
- Goals and success metrics
- Challenges and pain points
- Buying process and influencers
- Key messaging
- Content preferences
Format: 1-2 page doc, visual optional
Time saved: 2 hours → 30 minutes
10. Launch Retrospective Template
Core Sections:
- Launch metrics vs. goals
- What went well
- What didn't go well
- Root causes
- Action items for next launch
- Lessons for playbook
Format: Structured doc
Time saved: 1 hour → 20 minutes
Building Effective Templates
Start with your best example:
Don't build templates from scratch. Take your best battle card, one-pager, or pitch deck and templatize it.
Remove specific content, replace with [placeholders], keep the structure that works.
Bad placeholder: [Insert text here]
Good placeholder:
[ONE-SENTENCE COMPETITIVE POSITIONING]
Example: "We're built for enterprise teams who need deeper analytics than [Competitor X]'s SMB-focused platform provides."
Good placeholders include:
- Description of what goes here
- Example to guide content creation
- Character/word count guidelines
Make templates easy to find:
Create a dedicated template library:
📁 PMM Templates
├── Battle_Card_Template.pptx
├── One-Pager_Template.pptx
├── Pitch_Deck_Template.pptx
├── Launch_Brief_Template.gdoc
├── Positioning_Doc_Template.gdoc
├── Demo_Script_Template.gdoc
├── Case_Study_Template.pptx
├── Sales_Training_Template.pptx
├── Buyer_Persona_Template.gdoc
└── Launch_Retro_Template.gdoc
Link to this folder in your knowledge base, Slack pinned items, and team onboarding.
Include instructions:
Add a first page or section with:
- Purpose of this template
- When to use it
- How to customize it
- Who to get review from
- Where to save finished version
Example Battle Card Instructions:
PURPOSE: Competitive intelligence for sales to use in deals against specific competitor
WHEN TO USE: When creating or updating battle cards for any competitor
HOW TO CUSTOMIZE:
1. Replace [Competitor Name] throughout
2. Update "When We Win/They Win" based on recent win/loss
3. Add 3-5 trap questions that expose their weaknesses
4. Write response scripts for their top 3 selling points
5. Include 3 customer examples where we beat them
REVIEW: Get approval from Sales Leadership before sharing widely
SAVE TO: Battle Cards folder, name as "Battle_Card_[Competitor]_2025.pdf"
Make templates modular:
Pitch decks need different versions for different audiences:
- Enterprise vs. SMB
- Technical vs. business buyer
- 5-minute version vs. 30-minute version
Build modular templates with optional sections:
Base Deck: Problem, Solution, How It Works, Proof +Enterprise Module: Enterprise features, security, compliance +Technical Module: Architecture, integrations, APIs +ROI Module: Calculator, value framework
Sales can mix and match for their specific audience.
Designing Templates for Adoption
Make them beautiful:
Ugly templates don't get used. Invest in design:
- Consistent branding (colors, fonts, logos)
- Visual hierarchy (clear sections)
- Whitespace (not cramped)
- Icons and imagery (not text-only)
Work with design team or use tools like Canva with brand kits.
Make them easy to customize:
Templates with complex layouts break when people edit them.
Design for editability:
- Use text boxes, not embedded text in images
- Clear layer organization (in design tools)
- Locked elements for branding
- Editable elements for content
- Master slides/pages (so changes propagate)
Test with non-designers:
Have a junior PMM try using the template. If they struggle, simplify.
Rolling Out Templates to Your Team
Phase 1: Create initial templates (2-3 weeks)
Pick 3-5 most common deliverables. Build templates from best examples. Get design support. Review with team.
Phase 2: Pilot with next deliverable (1 week)
Next time someone needs a battle card or one-pager, use the template. Track time saved. Gather feedback. Refine based on learnings.
Phase 3: Team training (1 hour session)
Show team:
- Where templates live
- When to use each one
- How to customize
- Examples of templates in action
Phase 4: Make them required (ongoing)
Update process docs: "All battle cards must use standard template." Include template link in launch checklists.
Maintaining Templates
Quarterly template review:
- Are templates being used?
- What feedback have we received?
- Do templates reflect current brand?
- Are there new deliverable types needing templates?
Assign template owners:
Each major template has an owner responsible for:
- Keeping it current
- Incorporating feedback
- Training new team members
- Updating when brand refreshes
Version control:
When updating templates:
- Save old version to "Archive" folder
- Update "Last Modified" date on template
- Communicate changes to team
- Update any in-flight work using old template
Advanced Template Techniques
Dynamic Content:
For tools that support it (PowerPoint, Google Slides), use:
- Linked data sources (CRM data, analytics)
- Conditional formatting
- Auto-generated charts
- Mail merge for personalization
Template Automation:
Tools like Templafy, Seismic, or custom scripts can:
- Auto-populate templates with CRM data
- Enforce brand compliance
- Track template usage
- Suggest content based on audience
Only invest in automation if creating 50+ templated deliverables per quarter.
Localization:
For international teams:
- Create language-specific template versions
- Include translation guidelines
- Maintain consistent structure across languages
- Central template library with all versions
Measuring Template ROI
Time Saved:
Track time to create deliverables before and after templates:
- Battle cards: 2 hours → 30 minutes (75% reduction)
- One-pagers: 3 hours → 45 minutes (75% reduction)
- Pitch decks: 4 hours → 1 hour (75% reduction)
3-person PMM team creating 40 deliverables/year:
- Without templates: 120 hours
- With templates: 30 hours
- Time saved: 90 hours/year = $13,500 value (at $150/hour)
Consistency:
Survey sales quarterly: "How consistent is PMM content quality?" (1-5 scale)
Target: 4.0+ after template implementation
Adoption:
% of deliverables using templates vs. created from scratch
Target: 80%+ adoption within 3 months
Common Template Mistakes
Mistake 1: Too many templates
Creating templates for every possible deliverable, even rare ones.
Fix: Start with top 5-10 most common. Add others as needed.
Mistake 2: Too rigid
Templates so prescriptive they can't adapt to different use cases.
Fix: Make key elements modular and customizable.
Mistake 3: Too complex
Templates requiring advanced design skills to customize.
Fix: Test with least technical team member. Simplify until anyone can use it.
Mistake 4: No training
Building great templates but not teaching team how to use them.
Fix: 1-hour training session + quick reference guide.
Mistake 5: Set-it-and-forget-it
Templates from 2 years ago with outdated branding and messaging.
Fix: Quarterly review and update cycle.
Quick Start: Build Your First Template
This week:
Day 1: Pick one common deliverable (battle card, one-pager, pitch deck)
Day 2: Find your best example of that deliverable
Day 3: Convert to template (remove specific content, add placeholders, write instructions)
Day 4: Test with next deliverable needed
Day 5: Refine based on experience, share with team
Next week: Build template #2
Month 2: Build templates #3-5
Month 3: Run team training, make templates required
By quarter end, you've saved 30-50 hours while improving consistency.
The Ultimate Template Principle
Great templates make PMM teams faster and more consistent without sacrificing quality.
They shift time from formatting to strategy, from layout to content, from reinvention to refinement.
Build once, use forever. Your team (and calendar) will thank you.